The Whispers That We Hear
by pokemon fan 98
Summary: This is my explanation for the end of Turn, Turn, Turn, and what I believe could happen next. What if Garrett found a way to control Ward, and not only him, but another agent of Coulson's team? And what if this method of control was developed by one of them, a long time ago? Can the rest of the team delay the battle with HYDRA by saving their friends?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first attempt at an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fanfic. I watched Turn, Turn, Turn a few days ago and decided I needed to write down where I thought the events were leading. This is simply something I thought of while watching. Spoilers if you haven't seen the episode. If you have, please enjoy! Review!**

Jemma ran to Fitz and fell into him, breathing heavily and holding him tightly.

"Shh, it's okay, Jemma, it's okay." He whispered quickly, pulling her into him. "I've got you."

She closed her eyes and tried to relax, slowing her breathing. After a few moments that felt like forever, she separated from him and gave him a light smile. "Thank you, Fitz. I needed that."

He cleared his throat. "Yeah, no problem. Anytime."

Coulson put a hand on her shoulder. "I don't mean to rush you, but we should get going. We have a lot of renovating to do on the plane."

"Of course, sir." She said. He nodded and started walking back towards the plane, May a second behind him.

Fitz placed an arm around her shoulder and started walking slowly in the same direction, matching her step for step. She appreciated his concern; she was actually pleased with it, she realized with a light shock. She pushed the thought away quickly.

"Fitz, do you mind leaving me alone for a moment?"

He took his arm away from her and looked at her eyes. "Are you sure?"

Jemma nodded. "Yes. I just need some time to think." He hesitated. "Don't worry. I'll be just a few steps behind you."

He gave a reluctant nod and started walking forward, not moving too far ahead.

She sighed and started moving again. She didn't want Fitz to know, but she was terrified. The idea that any one of them could be a traitor was almost too much to handle. The two of them had little to no training in combat, not nearly enough to defeat a corrupt agent. But they would be staying in the lab, she told herself. If they were in danger, Coulson would teach them what they needed to know.

'I'm just being silly', she thought.' I trust my teammates. And Fitz is safe.' That last thought sent a thrill through her veins, but she dismissed it quickly. A thought rose up strongly in her mind, reassuring her. 'Everything is going to be fine.'

_That same time, on a plane..._

Garrett looked at the watch he wore on his wrist. It looked like any typical watch, a dull gold band with a cream colored face, the hands ticking steadily. He sat on the plane with Hand, two agents next to him. Hand looked at him with hatred, but Garrett was looking at the other person in the compartment. Ward stood a little ways away, arms crossed and eyes distant. He met eyes with his old SO and looked down quickly. Garrett smirked and brought his attention back to his watch, pressing a small button under the outer plating of the face. The screen changed, now showing a black background. Three dots appeared too, blinking blue. He touched the button again and they became green. 'Good.' He thought. 'At least this still works.'

Ward met his eyes again, unsuspecting. 'Kill the guards.' Garrett thought.

Ward's eyes became more focused and stared at the man for a moment: then he pulled out his gun and shot the men on either side of Garrett. Agent Hand started. 'End her. Now!'

Ward didn't hesitate, shooting her in the chest. She fell, gasping, and he fired two more shots into her. Then he put away his gun and stood like he had before, this time looking directly at Garrett.

"Nice work, kid." Garrett said, stretching.

"Thanks, sir." His tone was light but obedient.

"Yeah," Garrett said. "I don't know what I'd do without all those techies in S.H.I.E.L.D. This watch was the best thing I could have found." He stood and walked over to Agent Hand, kneeling down and moving the hair from her face. He touched gently right behind her ear and felt for the small bump he knew would be there. He pressed down, releasing and deactivating it. "Nothing personal, Hand." He said softly. "You were the means to furthering my little project with HYDRA. You did your job well."

He stood up, the intricate technology the size of a stone in jewelry held carefully in his palm. "This little trinket let me direct her thoughts." He said. "Pretty amazing, I have to admit. It doesn't affect you like complete mind control, making you a slave, but you aren't free either. I guess it's like whispering… but you don't know what I'm talking about, Ward."

Ward snapped to attention at his name.

'He's a good kid.' Garrett thought, sitting back down. 'I'm glad he's on my side.' He chuckled to himself. 'One agent with me, another on the inside, watching Coulson. Everything is going to be fine.'


	2. Chapter 2

Simmons walked onto the plane and gasped. Everything in immediate sight was destroyed, tables and chairs broken and decorations strewn across the floor. Coulson was standing in the entry way, his mouth held open.

"Sir, what-." She started to ask.

"They wrecked his car." Fitz interrupted. He was a step ahead of her, taking it all in.

"Oh. Yes, I can see why that would upset him." She looked around slowly. This was her home, and now it was just a pile of broken pieces.

Fitz seemed to understand exactly what she was thinking. "Don't worry about the damage, Jemma. I know it looks bad, but it's just that; nothing has changed except the look of it."

She smiled at him. He knew just what to say to make her feel better. "Thank you again, Fitz." They looked at each other for a moment. "Shall we get started, then? No need to wait to clean."

Fitz nodded and backed away a few steps. "Let's do it. I'll fetch the trash bags."

Simmons walked around and started picking up the largest pieces of rubble, moving them to one area of the room. She paused in her work a few moments later, a leg from a chair in her hands. 'Get close to Agent Fitz. Find out about all the weapons he has created for S.H.I.E.L.D.' The thought startled her at first because it wasn't hers. At least, she didn't think it was hers. It sounded familiar, but she couldn't place it. She blinked heavily. The thought was still on her mind, but now she recognized it as her own. Why wouldn't she get closer to Fitz? They were friends, and maybe something more than that. And as for the weapons, they had been under a lot of stress lately. Wanting them was reasonable; perfectly so, and she wondered why she hadn't wanted them before.

She shook her head and started working again, Fitz returning and handing her an empty garbage bag.

The team worked for the rest of the day, getting rid of all the rubble surprisingly quickly. May rushed off to check the cockpit after that, and Coulson said he needed some time alone. The damage his car had taken was serious, though they all knew it would be fixed within a day.

Fitz put a hand on her shoulder as Simmons tried to walk past him, stopping her. "You've done enough." He said.

She gave in quickly. "You're right. We've done all we can for today, and everyone needs time to decompress. And I know exactly where to do that:"

"The lab!" They said together.

Simmons, thinking quickly, touched him on the shoulder and darted away, calling over her shoulder, "You're it!"

"Simmons!" he cried, running after her. He caught her by the doors to the lab station. "That was not a fair race." He said, slightly out of breath.

She laughed and opened the door. "Since when have races been fair?" They walked in together, both sighing when they realized the lab hadn't been touched in the attack.

"So, I was wondering… have you been working on any new weapons lately?"

Fitz walked to the other side of the center table. "Nothing you don't already know about. Why?"

She looked down. "With everything that's happened in the past few weeks, I feel like we need to know exactly what they have against us. You know, what you've made for S.H.I.E.L.D. that the traitors could be using."

He sat down on a stool and reached under the table, pulling out a laptop. "Everything I have is on this device." He said. "I figured it was good to have a hard copy for times like this, when Skye is working on our network."

Simmons walked around the table and sat down next to him, scooting the stool close. He blushed when she did this but cleared his throat quickly and opened up a document.

"Now I know I can trust you, but would you mind not telling the others about this?" Fitz asked. "I don't want them to try to make any of these. I haven't perfected them yet."

"No problem." She watched as he pulled up different blueprints and documents. She saw one labeled Partnership. "What's that one?"

Fitz clicked on it to enlarge it. "This was one of my first projects. That's probably why you haven't seen it. I haven't touched it in a few years." His eyes squinted the way they always did when he really thought about something, eyebrows furrowing. "I thought I made a prototype and locked it away, but this doesn't confirm its location."

'Kiss him.' The thought startled her again, but less, her confusion lasting only seconds before she believed it to be her own thought. Then she put her hand under his chin and tilted his head up, bringing her lips to his. He froze when she did this but kissed her back after a moment, hesitantly but not weakly. Her eyes closed and she pulled back, opening them to look into his. Both stared at each other for a while, catching their breath and keeping still, not daring to break the silence.

Fitz swallowed heavily and x-ed out of the program on the laptop, putting it back under the table. "If you need anything, I'll just be, um, in my room." He walked quickly to the door of the lab, tripping over his feet before leaving with one last look at Simmons.

She stayed in that same spot for she didn't know how long before retrieving the laptop and reopening the files. 'That was a mistake.' She thought. 'It was only because of the fear and everything that we've had to deal with lately. It doesn't mean anything.' But she couldn't shake the question: Why did she kiss Fitz? She took an empty memory stick from a cabinet and copied the files, putting the stick deep into her pocket. She didn't know why, but she knew she needed to bring it to the outside of the building and put it in a safe place.

She did this right away, walking with a brisk pace. But she couldn't remember why she wanted to put the stick there. 'Fitz asked you to.' Her walk slowed and she visibly relaxed as she processed this. 'If Fitz asked me to, it must be important.'

She walked back onto the plane feeling relieved, going straight to her room to relax after a very stressful day. She never noticed Ward picking up the memory stick from where she hid it, or the man that walked next to him.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hope you guys have liked this so far! Review please!**

Agent Ward picked up the memory stick and handed it to his old SO. Garrett took it and shoved it into his pocket, turning around and walking back the way they had come, to the plane he was supposed to be a prisoner on. "You know, kid, it's actually tiring having two people to 'guide' at once. I have to make sure I only talk to one of you at a time."

Ward nodded and followed him. "Yes sir."

They arrived at the plane a few minutes later, Ward locking the door behind him. Garrett turned on the lights and walked over to the couch, lying down with a sigh. "You put the bodies where they won't be found?"

"Of course. No one will know where to look, if they even suspect that there are bodies."

Garrett laughed. "I like the way you think, kid. It's a wonder we ever separated." He pulled the memory stick out of his pocket and threw it up, catching it with one hand. "Just a little while now, and all operations will be ready. I only need one more thing from Coulson, and we'll have that by the end of tomorrow thanks to your teammate." Any humor his voice had vanished as he continued. "If Coulson could just see things the way I do, none of this would have to happen." 'You might even be here because you wanted to.' He thought.

"Sir." Ward said. "What else do you want me to do? I don't want to talk about my old team. Not after you told me how they betrayed us."

That brought a smirk back to Garrett's lips. 'Why pursue the truth when lies have this much power?' he thought. "Just stand guard for now. We don't have anything to do besides look over these designs. There will be a battle, but that's not for a long time." 'Long enough that I probably won't even need you anymore.'

He studied the weapons on his laptop for hours before falling into a calm sleep, not worried at all.

_After the kiss…_

Fitz paced in his room for a long time before falling asleep that night. Why had Jemma kissed him? Did she feel something for him, or was it just because of everything that was going on? Did he feel something for her?

He shook his head and sat on the edge of his bed. He couldn't get into that now. He had more important things to worry about, like how Jemma had acted around the kiss. He had never seen her look so scared, but he couldn't figure out why. He knew she had been through something, but nothing bad had happened. Or had it?

'I'm almost certain I've shown her Project Partnership before, though.' He thought. 'I just need to relax and go to sleep. Everyone was acting weird today, so things will be clearer tomorrow.'

A few moments later he was lying down on his bed, the covers carelessly thrown over him on the warm night. He decided that he had to think for a little while longer before he could sleep, so he went through the details of Project Partnership in his head.

It was his second big project when he was at school, meant to be a less violent way of dealing with enemies. The main interface was a watch, which connected to the wearer's brain in a harmless way. There were small pieces of machinery the size of pencil tip erasers at largest, and those were meant for the enemies. They were put behind the ear, in a place that was easily overlooked by anyone who didn't know what to look for. If the earpieces were online, the watch would show a single green dot for each piece.

It was a form of mind control, because the person with the watch was connected with the person with the earpiece. They heard everything the earpiece did, so they knew when to act. They could think a command and the earpiece would convey it to the brain. It was something that could not be fought easily, as the earpiece made the brain think that the thought was self-given.

He had made a prototype almost immediately, and, not having a need at the time, locked it away. 'Did I really?' he asked himself. 'I might've just destroyed it.' But the more he thought about it, the more confident he felt that he had hidden it. And he had hidden it in the only place he knew was safe: S.H.I.E.L.D.

'Oh, crap.' He thought. 'If Jemma was right, and the traitors are using my technology against us, could they have Partnership?'

He sat up straight, completely throwing off the sheets he used as a blanket. "I need to talk to Skye."

_Later…_

"So what do you think?"

Skye took her time looking up from the laptop she was typing on. They were in the lab, in the same spots Fitz and Simmons had been earlier that day. "I hate to say it, but yeah, it looks like HYDRA could have your weapon."

Fitz put his head down on the table and closed his eyes. "I should have never built it."

"You couldn't have known what would happen. Don't blame yourself." She turned her attention back to the computer. "Hey, did you make a copy of something?"

He raised his head a little and looked at her. "What?" he sounded defeated.

"A copy. Someone made a copy of these documents on a memory stick. I can tell because they left it open. It's not definite, but it looks like a copy was made. And I'm guessing it wasn't you."

"Wait a minute." He stood up. "The only other person who's seen this laptop is… no. No I don't believe it."

Skye grabbed his arm. "Fitz! Who is it?"

He looked her in the eyes, seeming to plead with her. "Simmons." It came out a whisper. "She was asking me about weapons earlier, but I just thought she was scared after… you know."

Skye stood up and seemed to not know where to step. "Does this mean Simmons is a traitor? 'Cause I don't believe it at all. She would never do that to us."

"No. I know Jemma, and that would never be an option for her." He looked down at his hands. "You said you weren't sure a copy was made. Is there a definite way to know?"

"Yeah, but it'll take some time. I can be done by morning."

Fitz bit his lip and nodded. "I want to be completely sure before we ask her. I might've left a blank stick in the computer on accident…" He shook his head. "No, I know this isn't what it looks like. Forget about it, okay?"

Skye smiled. "Okay. I can do that."

"When does Ward get back? Garrett should be in custody by now." 'Could Garrett have Partnership?' he thought.

Skye seemed to be thinking the same thing he was. "Sometime tomorrow. Noon at the latest. I can wait until then to… check things."

"Good, good." He went to shut the laptop and leave. "Just be careful, okay?" He said before doing it. "No one else needs to get hurt. We've had enough of that lately."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you all for reading! I am very pleased with your response to this story. Review please!**

Fitz opened the door slowly, wincing whenever it made noise. Soft morning light forced its way into the room as he opened the door, causing him to move even slower. He heard her deep, even breathing on the bed and felt relief when he was able to fit through the small gap the door made. He stepped lightly to the bedside and looked at her for a moment.

Her hair was fanned out on her pillow, her head turned to the side. She looked very peaceful, a faint smile on her lips as she dreamed. He reached out and let his hand hover over her ear, worried about waking her. He took a deep breath and moved some of her hair, letting one finger touch the soft skin behind the ear. There was nothing there.

He wished he could leave then, but he knew he had to check the other side if he wanted to relax. He tiptoed over to the other side of the bed. This would be harder; her ear was completely covered by the pillow. Fitz put one hand to her chin to turn her face away. She made a small sound at his touch, but otherwise didn't stir as he successfully repositioned her. He felt behind her other ear.

A small bump was there, one that he knew was not natural. He took his hand away and closed his eyes, silently cursing. Skye had been right. Simmons must have made a copy of his weapons documents.

He felt a strong urge to rip the small piece away and destroy it, but knew that it would only cause more harm. If Garrett had the watch, which was the most likely scenario, then Ward could have been affected too. If Simmons was taken off of his contact, Garrett could hurt Ward just to spite Coulson.

Fitz left the room as quietly as he had entered, closing the door gently behind him. He couldn't tell Coulson about this, or May. They would insist on putting Simmons in the holding cell, which would give them away to Garrett. But he could tell Skye. She would want to know about Ward anyway.

He found her in her room. He told her about what he had found out, and she just nodded. They had expected this result.

"If I get my hands on Garrett, I swear-."

"**We **can take care of it." Skye interrupted. She looked him in the eyes, no joy in her expression. "I want this guy just as much as you, Fitz."

He nodded. "Okay. But what should we do right now? We can't show Simmons that we know, because then Garrett knows and Ward is in danger. She probably doesn't even know. I designed it so only the one wearing the watch can separate the thoughts that each person thinks."

"You kind of lost me, but I know what you mean. If Simmons finds out something's up, that's bad. So we watch her for today. We can protect the others if we need to, but she doesn't seem to be much of a threat."

Fitz shook his head. "Maybe she's not like Ward, but Simmons can definitely fight. She knows how to protect herself well enough, and with Garrett's help she might be even better. Have you tried tracking Ward?"

She opened up the laptop and started typing. "I know he's not far, I just don't know exactly where he is."

He looked over her shoulder. "Try locating the plane they were on. They probably haven't gone that far from it."

"That's a good idea." She said quietly. She typed rapidly and then smiled. "Got it. They're two miles to the west, just starting to move further away."

Fitz narrowed his eyes. "We need a way to get close to them without their noticing. Garrett can use the two of them against us, so we need to also find a way to cure them quickly once we're close enough to both of them."

"So how do we get Simmons close enough to Ward without her or Garrett finding out?"

"Simple." He replied. "Simmons doesn't find out we're going anywhere. We keep her unconscious while we move her."

"But won't he still be suspicious when she doesn't wake up?"

Fitz smiled. "Haven't you ever played sick to skip school? All we have to do is give her a fake fever and tell her she's sick. She'll believe us."

Skye's eyes widened as she gave Fitz an approving look. "Who knew science boy could be so devious?"

He met her look head on. "When my friends are threatened, I can be your worst nightmare. Now come on, we have some work to do. I'll fetch some gas to keep her asleep while we make her look and feel sick. You get a heating pad and anything else we might need. Meet me outside her room in ten minutes. She wakes up early."

_Ten minutes later…_

"You ready? We have to be convincing."

Skye took a deep breath. "Let's do it."

Fitz opened the door quietly and stepped inside- and cursed. The bed was empty, but the light to the small bathroom connected to it was on, the sink running. He walked in a little more to give Skye room to enter and rapped his fist against the door. "Simmons? Are you okay?"

The water turned off and the bathroom door opened. Jemma poked her head out and gasped. "Fitz! Skye! What are you doing here?"

Fitz tried to look concerned. "You were sick last night, remember? We found you outside your room and put you in your bed. We wanted to make sure you were alright."

Simmons stepped all the way out. "I don't remember that. After we… left the lab, I came right up here and went to bed."

Fitz shook his head. "Do you think I'd lie about something like this?"

"Are you feeling any better?" Skye asked.

"Yes, I'm fine." Simmons said. Her tone became colder. "Now if you'll excuse me, I would like my room to myself."

"Of course." Skye said. She backed out the door, Fitz right behind her. She pulled him a few feet away. "What do we do now? She didn't believe us!"

Fitz lowered his voice. "That's because Simmons believes she never gets sick. This will work. Just watch."

He listened by the door for a second before entering again. He put the small hose under the door of the bathroom and flipped the switch, making the gas come out of it. Just a small amount. Then he exited the room quickly, careful to avoid the tip of the hose.

Simmons was washing her face in the sink when she felt it. Her head felt heavy, and she braced her arms against the sink to hold herself up, suddenly feeling weak. Maybe Fitz hadn't been lying. "Fitz!" she called. Black spots danced at the edge of her vision, and before she knew it Fitz was helping her back to her bed.

"What's wrong with me, Fitz? Why do I feel dizzy?"

He pushed her back onto the bed and felt her forehead. "I hate to say it, but you're not well."

She grimaced as another wave of dizziness hit her. "But I'm never sick!"

Fitz grabbed her hand. "Maybe it's because of all the stress we've been through. I want you to stay in bed today, okay?" He met her eyes, and she pouted.

"Okay." She said. "But just until this passes."

Fitz smiled in relief. "I'm going to give you a sedative. It'll help you recover faster."

'Don't let him give it to you.' The thought was loud and vehement. She gasped and jerked away from Fitz. "No! No sedatives. I want to stay alert!"

He froze when she recoiled from his touch. She noticed his eyes harden, but they quickly appeared concerned again. "Jemma, you can trust me. I would never let anything hurt you."

She sat up and scooted closer to him. "I know, Fitz. But let me be, okay? I'll be fine. I'll see you in a few hours."

He started to leave. "Just promise me you'll try to rest."

"I promise."

"Alright then. I'll be here if you need me." Then he left.

Jemma sighed and leaned back against the headboard. 'Avoid him for now. Pretend to keep your promise.'

It was the first time she felt like she couldn't trust Fitz. He had always been there for her, and now she felt like he was betraying her. But she couldn't figure out why, and that confused her more than anything. Then she thought about clearing her mind, and felt much better. She had a job to do, and Fitz couldn't know about it. She couldn't trust him.

_Outside the room…_

Skye ran to him the moment he left Simmons's room. "Well, did it work?"

He kept walking. "Sort of. I convinced her to stay in bed, but she wouldn't take the sedative. But I don't think Garrett knows we know."

Skye rushed to keep up with him. "So what do we do now?"

He glanced at her. "We come up with a final plan. No matter what, we leave this plane at noon."


	5. Chapter 5

"That was almost bad." Garrett said. "I need her to get me one more piece of information, and then we'll be done here. No fighting has to happen, as long as she doesn't get caught. What do you think Ward?"

Ward looked up. He was sitting on the chair across from the couch, reading a magazine. "About Simmons? She's a good agent. She won't screw this up."

'Did I really need to take Ward with me?' he asked himself. 'Of course I did. He's insurance if the other fails to get me what I need from Coulson. Not to mention protection. Everything's working out. And as soon as this is over, it's off to the Fridge.'

_Skye's room, a little bit later…_

"Have you thought of anything yet?"

"Nope." Fitz replied. He looked over at Skye and couldn't help but smile. She was lounged on her bed, laptop on her stomach, one arm and one leg draped over the side. He sat on a chair across from her, his head in his hands.

"Hey." She said, giving him a look. "It's not funny."

He sat up straighter. "No it's not. But I'm drawing a huge blank. I usually consult Simmons when I'm stuck, but I obviously can't do that!"

Skye was quiet for a moment. "Maybe we're thinking too hard. What if we just jam his signal?"

"That's not possible. I built it so it would be like nothing else, able to work even in areas where waves can't travel as well." He stared into space, his eyes focusing on some unseen feature as his mind reached for ideas. "But I do know how to disconnect it once we're close enough."

Skye sat up, pushing the laptop away. "What about the Night-Night Gun?"

He froze as he thought about that, a smile growing on his face. "Or the ICER! Yes, that could work. It would prevent Garrett from controlling them and not cause them any harm. Great thinking, Skye!" Fitz jumped up and walked to the door, then turned around slowly. "But I can't shoot at Simmons."

She turned so her feet were planted on the floor, her laptop at the foot of her bed. She gave him a soft smile. "That's okay. You take Ward."

Fitz looked amused. "Yeah, that would work well." His voice was thick with sarcasm. "Ward wouldn't hesitate to shoot me, Skye. In fact, I think he'd enjoy it. He didn't approve of my interpretation of him a while ago."

Skye laughed. "I remember that. Simmons actually did it pretty well." She saw him wince and softened her voice. "You know it's not her that's against us. Simmons would never try to hurt you if she could help it."

"I know. Trust me, I know." His eyes lightened, temporary grief passed. "Thank you. I…" Skye saw how much saying this pained him and wanted to comfort him. "I think I can do it now. You take Ward. I'll go get two ICERs."

_Simmons's room…_

"I have to get ready." She said aloud. It had been a few hours since Fitz had put her back to bed, and now it was about ten o'clock. Simmons was done with staying in bed. Her dizziness had passed a few minutes ago, and she felt like she needed to get going for the day. She didn't know why, but it seemed like an important day.

She dressed quickly and brushed her hair. Then she walked to the lab, finding a computer there and logging on. First she brought up all of the research she and Fitz had worked on since joining Coulson's team. She put it all onto another memory stick. Then she started searching for other information.

'Curses.' She thought. 'I need a password.' She looked at the owner of the file she needed. Phil Coulson.

'Get that password, whatever means necessary.'

She grabbed an ICER from the weapons table and hid it under her coat, walking to Coulson's room at a leisurely pace. She knocked on his door. "Sir, may I come in?"

She heard shuffling, and then a calm answer. "Sure, Simmons."

Simmons opened the door and stepped inside. Coulson was behind his desk, a mountain of papers stacked on one side of him, a computer on the other. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, sir, I was wondering if- oh!" She gasped and clutched at her stomach, bending over and falling to her knees.

"Simmons, are you okay?!" Coulson stood up in a hurry.

"Yes, sir, I'm fi-." She collapsed on the floor.

Coulson ran to her and kneeled down beside her, grabbing her shoulder. "Simmons, we need to find Fitz. He'll find out what's going on."

She hid her eyes under her hair. "Okay." He started to help her up, draping one arm over his shoulders. Then she pulled the ICER out from her coat and pulled the trigger. Coulson barely had time to react, only enough to look at her with surprise-and hurt, before falling back. He was unconscious is seconds.

That being done, she walked to his desk and sat at his computer. His files were open, most of them dealing with questions he had about S.H.I.E.L.D. lately. She smiled. If these were already open, then Coulson was already logged onto the system, which meant all his other files could be reached. Finding the one called "Concerns", she copied it and put it onto the half full flash drive.

She listened by the door for a moment, and hearing nothing, quietly slipped out. She felt accomplished, and was surprised Coulson had fallen for her acting-she was not known for undercover operations.

'Leave the plane. Bring nothing but the information, ICER, and water. Find me.' By now the voice was familiar, even comforting. It felt right to follow the orders. A small part of Simmons rejected this last thought, but she shook that off. She had a mission to complete, and she intended to do just that.

She walked to the kitchen and grabbed three bottles of water, placing them in the small bag she wore. The ICER she kept under her coat, and the flash drive was securely in her breast pocket. This done she set off, opening the loading dock and walking out. This was it.

_An hour later…_

"I'm going to check on Jemma."

Fitz walked out of Skye's room and down the hall, to the room he had been in a lot that day. He knocked on the door. "Jemma? Are you feeling better?"

There was no response. Fitz opened the door and found the room empty. He sighed. Skye had told him to expect this, but he hadn't wanted to believe her.

Skye walked in. "I figured this would happen. Not saying I'm glad, but it's a typical bad-guy thing."

Fitz stormed past her. "Let's tell Coulson we have an idea that needs fieldwork. We're leaving now."

They walked to his office and knocked on his door. There was no response. "I'm getting really tired of silent doors." Fitz said. He opened the door and walked in. "Coulson!"

Skye rushed past him to Coulson, going to her knees and checking his pulse. She sighed when she found it to be strong. "He's alright. Just knocked out." She looked up at him. "Why do you think she did it?"

He was silent. Skye was shocked to see how angry he looked. "Garrett must have needed something from him." He walked to Coulson. "We're going to find Jemma." He said to him. Coulson was just beginning to stir. "We'll be back shortly." He looked back at Skye. "Let's get this over with."

A/N: Hi guys! I meant to make this the last chapter, but I really wanted to give you something to read until I can finish it. It won't be too long, I promise! Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed it so far. Reviews are always welcome!


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I am so sorry for the gap since the last update! I have been slammed with work lately. I'm very happy with all of the support I've seen for this story. Thank you all so much. Enjoy!**

The walk was longer than he and Skye had expected. They had relocated the Bus while finishing up repairs to an almost uninhabited area. The sun was hot, and there was no breeze and very little shade as they trudged on. Skye had a tracker in her hand, telling them the direction and distance to the small aircraft that held their friend. They had walked two miles already, and the tracker read that there were another three to go. Garrett was moving. Slowly, but he was moving. Skye longed for water after a short while, not used to long distances.

"What do we do once we get there?" Skye asked. "Do we shoot first, ask questions later?"

Fitz laughed bitterly. "I don't know if we'll have that many questions for Garrett, Skye. But yes. If possible, we sneak up on them, use the ICERs, and capture Garrett."

Skye put on a fake smile. "There are so many things that can go wrong with this plan."

"Won't argue with you there."

She studied the surrounding area. There were very few trees, and the ground looked like a desert, all sand or hard packed dirt. It was flat, which worried her. If they wanted to sneak up on Ward and Simmons, how would the area keep them hidden? She decided not to worry about that. It was something they couldn't control, and fixating on the impossible never did any good.

Instead she thought about Ward. She had kissed him before all of this had started, when they had both thought he was going to die. It was the first time anything like that had happened, and she had felt relieved to let it out in the open. She was sure that, even if he didn't return her feelings, that was the right moment to show them. Then he had gone on the plane with Garrett, and this situation had started.

"Hey, Fitz?"

He looked up, eyes wide. "What's up?"

She swallowed and took a breath. "When do you think Garrett put your device on Ward and Simmons? When were they alone?"

He slowed his step, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I hadn't thought about that. He could have done it in the fight before he was apprehended. He was close enough to Ward then, especially since it's so easy to conceal. But Simmons… I have no idea."

Skye thought about that for a minute. "I get how he did it to Ward, but he was never near Simmons after she left the Bus. Unless he had someone else under his control…"

"What are you thinking, Skye?"

She stopped. "Agent Hand. I think he used Hand to get to Simmons, and no one has heard from her yet. I know it's too early for anyone else to be worried by that, but Garrett probably had Ward get her out of the way." She started walking again. "I just hope 'out of the way' doesn't mean dead. I know Garrett would kill Hand, but maybe Ward found a better way to please him."

Fitz started again too, keeping pace with Skye. "I can see that, but we have no proof. He could have used anyone else. We'll find out soon, though." She could tell from his tone that her thought wasn't a priority at the moment.

They were quiet for a while as both thought things over. Skye guessed that Fitz was thinking about Simmons, because he kept staring into space and snapping back quickly, concern flashing in his eyes each time, pupils dilating. She felt the same way about Ward, though she knew Fitz was much closer to Simmons than she was to Ward.

One question kept popping back into her mind, nagging at her however much she tried to dismiss it. What if he didn't recognize her when they found the plane, and if he did, would he act like a robot, unfeeling and responding to orders without a second thought? Skye tried to be positive and say that Ward could never do that, not to any members of his team. Not to her, she hoped.

The rest of the walk was spent in a kind of silent communication. No words were exchanged, but both Skye and Fitz were comforted by the other's presence, and made sure the other was doing alright periodically.

Skye held up the tracker. "We're almost on top of it, according to this."

The terrain was still basically the same, but there was patchy grass spread thinly throughout the area here, the ground slightly softer. There was also more cover from trees. The sun shone high overhead, but fortunately it was only warm, not as hot as they had dreaded it would be.

Fitz put a hand up to cover his eyes and looked over the area. "Over there." He said. He pointed to the farthest point in their line of vision, where foliage was dense. "Why would there be a random patch of forest in desert conditions?" he asked with a smile. "When people try to hide in plain sight."

Skye nodded. "Alright. So we know the plane's behind that. Are they there too?"

He put his hands to his temples and closed his eyes. "Hold on, let me channel my abilities." He opened his eyes and gave her a look. "How am I supposed to know? But I'm betting they are in or near the plane. It's only logical."

She put her hands up. "Dang, I didn't know it was that time of the month for you." He glared at her and she grew serious. "Sorry." She paused for a moment. "Don't we look sort of suspicious standing in the open?"

Fitz looked alarmed at that. "Well, I would have to say yes. Get out your ICER. We have to get this done quickly."

They brought out their weapons and started walking as quietly as they could. They approached the hastily gathered greens and crouched behind them, listening for any movement.

Fitz looked at Skye and pointed to the right, signaling her to move that way. He started to move to the left, peeping around the greens. The plane was there, but it was in pieces. The wings had been separated from the body, the foliage used to cover it and… lure them in. He sighed. "Skye, I think this might be-."

"A trap?" He turned around and saw Skye with her hands above her head, Ward taking the ICER from her. "I think it's a little late for that."

**A/N: The plot thickens! This is the beginning of the end. The next chapter will probably be short, but I wanted to give you guys something to read until I can finish it. There will only be one more chapter. Tell me if you want to see anything special in it, and stay tuned!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: This is it! The final chapter. Thank you all for all the support you've given me by reading/reviewing/following. Special thanks to Wolf's Edge for giving me great suggestions and feedback. **

**Also, I do support Fitz and Simmons as a couple (I ship it so hard!), but this fanfic is mostly about deepening their bond. I may write another story about them getting together, if enough people want it. Anyway, you guys are great. Thank you, and enjoy!**

Fitz pointed the gun at Ward with a slight wobble. "Skye, try not to move."

He heard a click behind his head. "You might want to take your own advice, kid."

Fitz felt hatred rise up in him for that voice like fire, quick to ignite. His jaw tightened as he looked over his shoulder. Garrett stood close by, a pistol pointed at Fitz. Simmons stood behind him, looking small as she stood without a weapon of any form. He met her eyes and all the anger vanished for an instant, the fire quenched just as easily as it started, longing for her to return to herself with everything he had.

She looked back at him with confusion. Then her face looked crushed with hurt, and she looked at him incredulously. "How could you betray us, Fitz? What did we do?"

He blinked at her. "What are you talking about-?" He looked back at Garrett, his tone thick with disgust. "That's low, even for you. Abusing emotions as if they're nothing more than play things." His eyes back to Simmons now, he tried to sound as persuasive as he could. "Jemma, fight it. I know you can."

Garrett laughed. "You know more than anyone just how much effect that has. I have complete control."

"I'm going to turn around now, Garrett. Don't shoot, I just want to face you while we try to have a conversation." He moved slowly, but Garrett didn't do anything. The gun stayed trained on him, and he knew the man would take the first opportunity Fitz made to shoot him. "I just want to know a few things. What did you want to accomplish with all of this?"

The man's eyes narrowed. "I don't think you need to know that information. Anything else?"

Fitz scrambled for another question. He had to stall for time until Ward loosened his grip on Skye. "Well, how did you get hold of my device?"

Garrett smiled and eased his tension a little, pride making him confident. "Wasn't hard. I just had to do some research first, and then use my credentials to gain access to the storage site. I'd heard rumors of your little device from my superiors, and I knew it could be used for a good cause instead of sitting on a shelf. But you didn't think of its potential, did you boy?"

Fitz tried to look ashamed of this. "I guess not." He darted his eyes to Skye whenever Garrett looked back to Simmons. He was pleased to see that Ward's arms were loosening around Skye, his hand no longer clenched tight on her arm. She met his eyes and nodded. He took that to mean she knew he was stalling for her. When he looked back at Garrett he could tell the man was getting bored, so he decided to move; but after one more question. "Just one more thing, Garrett. What are you going to do next? Do you need Ward and Simmons?"

Garrett studied Fitz. "You're very open with the questions considering you have a gun aimed at you. I admire that. Because of that I can let you in on a little of what I plan to do."

Fitz smiled a little.

"I'm going to get reinforcements. You've probably guessed by now that HYDRA is back and stronger than ever, and the few S.H.I.E.L.D. agents left will do anything to oppose them. We don't plan on letting that happen. And as for your friends," he looked back at Simmons and then at Ward. "As long as they don't get in my way, they can go. Obviously you can't, though."

Fitz felt his eyes widen and a cold feeling spread through him. "Why? What have we done?"

Garrett lost the satisfied expression he had had for an all-business one. "You didn't think I'd tell you even a part of my plan if I planned on letting you go. Now, I'm getting tired of this talking. Let's finish this quickly."

"Skye, now!" Fitz screamed as Garrett leveled the gun. He forced his hand up and knocked the weapon out of the man's hands. Garrett glared at Fitz and backed away. He pressed a button on a switch and a rush of wind was heard.

Then Fitz's attention was taken by something else. Simmons. She lunged for the gun Garrett had dropped and grabbed it, movements quick and accurate. He heard Skye fighting with Ward, but before he could help he had to get rid of that blasted gun.

"Jemma, it's me, Fitz." She stared him down, his words having no effect. His ICER lay a few feet away. He had dropped it when he took the gun away from Garrett. Simmons leveled the gun at him. He felt helpless. He couldn't bring himself to hurt her, but he definitely did not want to be shot.

Fortunately, Skye had his back. "Simmons!" she shouted. Simmons jerked at the noise, her gaze sliding to Skye's direction. Fitz took that chance and grabbed her wrist. Her finger pulled back on the trigger and the weapon fired, but he yanked it up at the last second. The bullet fired harmlessly into the air. Then he tore it from her grasp and threw it as far as he could. Simmons just stared at him for a moment, shocked. He ignored her and went to help Skye, who was trapped under Ward's body on the ground.

"A little help!" she gasped. Ward was not unconscious, but had her pinned down to restrain her, and her ICER was just out of reach.

"No problem." He grabbed it and fired.

Skye gasped as Ward went limp on top of her, sighing as he lost consciousness. She stared at him for a second and then looked back at Fitz, who had put down the arm with the ICER. "This isn't much better." She said. "He's kind of a big guy."

"Just give me a moment." He turned back to look at Simmons and make sure she wasn't about to attack again. She was closer than before, but she still didn't have a weapon. She looked like she was trying to think of a way to subdue him, but he knew Garrett was still influencing her, so she would end up attacking.

"You have to do it." Skye said.

He closed his eyes. "I know." He walked a bit closer and fired quickly. He saw the fear flash in her eyes before they lost their focus and lunged. He caught her just before she hit the ground, her body limp as she lost consciousness. He went to his knees. "I'm sorry, Jemma."

He lowered her gently to the ground and stood to go help Skye. She was right. Ward was a very big guy, heavy because of how strong he was. Finally, breathing heavier, he pulled Ward a few feet away, allowing Skye to breathe normally again.

She sat up, and rubbed her head. "He just about tackled me when I tried to snag my ICER. He will definitely be hearing about that later."

Fitz smiled a little. "I bet he will." He looked around and up and frowned. "Garrett's gone."

Skye tilted her head back and bit her lip. "Yep. I was trapped under Ward for a few minutes and saw him escape. He had a helicopter ready at his call." She looked back at Fitz. "How are we going to get back to the Bus?"

Fitz opened his mouth and then closed it. "I may have neglected to think of that." He rocked back on his heels. "It's going to be a bit before we can move them. You better get comfortable."

She fell back and closed her eyes.

Fitz walked back to Simmons and knelt down next to her. He pulled her head onto his lap and smoothed down her hair, trying to make her as comfortable as he could. Then he brought his head down to hers and brushed his lips against her forehead, lingering there for a second. His lips moved away and he put his forehead against hers, eyes closed. "I'm sorry I had to do it, Jemma. I hate hurting you." He whispered.

He didn't know how long he held her, but after a short while he started at a rushing sound. He looked back at Skye, who had moved closer to Ward. She looked just as confused as he felt. Everything was made clear as a plane appeared, coming in their direction. Fitz squinted as it landed not far from them, and then smiled as he realized it was the Bus.

The loading dock opened and Coulson ran down it, May coming out after him. "What's happened?" he asked Fitz. Worry was clear in his voice as he took in the scene- two agents down and two sitting next to them doing nothing. "I remember seeing you and Skye, or hearing you, say something about leaving…"

Fitz moved slightly, adjusting Simmons a bit. "We can explain everything later, sir. Right now I just want to make sure Ward and Simmons are alright."

"Of course. Bring them on and we'll take off."

Skye raised one arm, half in greeting. "A little help with that? I can't be held completely responsible for my SO."

Coulson smiled and went to help her. Fitz pulled Simmons fully into his lap and stood up, cradling her in his arms as much as possible. Then he walked back onto the Bus.

_Some time later…_

It was about half an hour before Ward and Simmons started to wake. Right when they had gotten on the Bus Fitz had removed his device from both of them, freeing them from Garrett's control. He and Skye were just finishing filling Coulson in when Ward stirred, groaning. He sat up and rubbed his head.

"What happened?"

They were in the common area of the plane, Fitz, Coulson, and Skye in chairs, Ward and Simmons on mats pulled in from somewhere else. They all wanted to be there when they woke up, but felt the lab would disorient them too much, so they had voted on pulling in more seating arrangements. Coulson moved up in his seat, sitting up straighter. "What do you remember from the past two days?"

Ward blinked. "It's been rough. We learned that HYDRA infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. to its core, and there are almost no loyal agents left. Then we found out Garrett was the mastermind, and I took him on the plane with Hand…" He looked at Coulson when everyone looked away. "Why?"

Just then Simmons groaned softly and stretched, sitting up. She blinked at Fitz, just noticing where they all were. "What's going on?"

Coulson shifted his gaze to her. "You two have been through a lot the past two days. Do you remember anything after we captured Garrett?"

Simmons shook her head. "I'm drawing a blank. The last thing I remember was Agent Hand talking with me before you arrived."

Ward responded the same way. "I remember learning about Garrett, then nothing. Coulson, what happened?"

"I can explain that." Fitz stood up. "There was this design I made back at the Academy, a device that could be used to control another person's thoughts. Jemma, you would be able to give a better description of how it affects the brain, but anyway, it gives them control without making the affected person lose their normal behavior. I put it into storage because I never found a suitable test for it."

"Wouldn't the affected person know something was wrong?" Simmons asked.

Fitz smiled. It felt like they were just back in the lab, talking about their work. "That's what makes it so special. They do realize it in the beginning, but the way if affects the brain, they think the thought is their own. The more it happens the easier it is to believe that, so the reaction time becomes instantaneous."

She got that look on her face that she always did when she wanted to study something. "I'll show you the design later." He promised. She smiled gratefully.

Coulson cleared his throat and took over. "Somehow Garrett learned about Fitz's device and located it. He took the receptors and put them on you two. Ward, he wanted you to get him out of prison by killing his guards. At least, that's my guess. Simmons, he wanted you to get him information. From me."

Ward's face became stoic. Simmons grew worried. "From you, sir? In what way?"

Fitz gave Coulson a look. "It wasn't you, Jemma. Garrett made you take it, whatever it took. Besides, he's perfectly fine now, right sir?"

Coulson nodded. "I am as good as I can be for all the news I've received lately." His tone softened. "But you didn't hurt me. You got the information without shedding blood, which I am thankful for."

"But sir, what information did I take? What did Garrett want so badly?" she asked.

He sighed. "Everything I had on S.H.I.E.L.D. that I wanted to look into, which covers a lot."

"Garrett said he wanted reinforcements." Skye said. She had moved her chair closer to Ward.

"Son of a bitch." Coulson said quietly. "He's going to the Fridge."

He grabbed a communicator. "May, we need to go to one of the bases not over-run by HYDRA."

She responded seconds later. "Taking off now. We should reach the nearest one in a couple of hours."

"Good." He said. He looked back at the people in the room with him. "Well, I guess I'll leave you to it. I'll be in my office if you need me." He walked out with a quick stride.

Ward stood up. "I'm going to my quarters." He said. Then he walked out as well.

Skye stood up too. "I'll walk with you." She said, following him.

Fitz pursed his lips and rocked once on his heels. "That was rather abrupt, don't you think?" He didn't get an answer, so he looked at Simmons.

She sniffled and he noticed a tear starting to fall, though she was being very quiet about it.

He walked over to her and sat down next to her, putting an arm around her. "Shh, Jemma, it's okay." He said soothingly. "Everything's fine."

She leaned into him and cried for a few minutes, recovering her composure quickly. "I'm sorry. I just can't believe I actually hurt Coulson, and could have hurt you. You and Skye were the ones who saved us, right? That means we must have faced off in some way."

"Well, yes, but not really. All we did was use the ICERs. Then Coulson arrived with the Bus, and here we are."

Simmons sighed.

"Can I tell you something?" Fitz asked. His voice was quiet now, soft.

"Of course."

He swallowed. "When I learned that Garrett was in your head, I was scared. I didn't know what he would do, and I didn't want to do anything to make him suspicious." His hands were tight on his knees. "I didn't know if he would take you away with him, or make you…" He put his head down a bit. "I just didn't want to lose you. I don't know what I'd do without you." The last part was barely audible, but Simmons heard it loud and clear. He had her complete attention.

She moved her hand on top of his. "You'll never have to worry about that, Fitz." She smiled at him. "I'm not going anywhere."


End file.
